Unless leadership is somehow intrinsically ingrained in the individual their whole lives, many people find new leadership to be like fighting a battle. New leaders attempt to control their environment with hard rules and stiff regulations and strict punishments because they simply do not feel in control of their own leadership and therefore tend to take it out on their subordinates. Natural leaders do not suffer this problem, simply because they have a deep understanding of what motivates and repels human beings and they act accordingly. However, not everyone possesses these innate virtues.
Authority figures who are good at their jobs and deliver high quality performance without a great deal of employee turnover and who command the respect of their subordinates are few and far between. These tend to be senior executives, and they tend to run or own the company at the highest levels because they are considered qualified and experienced and trustworthy due to their long track record of effective leadership. These individuals possess a rare quality which is overlooked by younger executives and that is the power of leniency. They understand exactly where the boundaries of their subordinates cross their own boundaries, and they are really effective at making sure that they give their employees as much space and room as possible before they feel the need to nudge them back across the line where they are supposed to be. They recognize that breathing room is necessary in order to effectively produce.
Leniency has several sub-headings, such as forgiveness without rancor, staying strong when others disagree, and pushing forward during an economic downturn. Leniency by itself means very little, but when it is coupled with strength, discretion, judgment, and knowledge, it becomes a very powerful tool.
While you may wish to use plenty of leniency with your own employees, it is still necessary to keep an eye of them and that is where employee drug and alcohol screening comes in. Onsite drug testing is perfect for those cases where you need to know for sure what is going on, but you have no interest in butting in on a regular basis and becoming a control freak. Call Mediscreen to learn more about onsite drug testing: (+61) 1300 79 70 40.
